


sky full of stars

by sugarwara



Category: Free!
Genre: AU Fic, Energy Weapons, M/M, Minor Character Death, SouMako Week 2015, Space Adventurers!, dont worry none of them are the ones listed above, i should not be allowed to tag these things, makoto is really just a sweetheart, sousuke is too awkward to say what he feels, theres some fighting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-11
Updated: 2015-10-11
Packaged: 2018-04-25 21:14:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,657
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4976779
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sugarwara/pseuds/sugarwara
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When you're a part of a team of space adventurers, you're bound to come across some amazing, plus some horrifying, things along the way.</p>
            </blockquote>





	sky full of stars

**Author's Note:**

> day 2! since the prompt said crossover or AUs (and i cant think of a story to cross this over with) i went with this au i thought about at 11.30pm on the day before a major exam of mine :))
> 
> WARNING: some unpleasant shit goes down, and theres some implication of other pairings. im mainly talking about the unpleasant shit (unless youre allergic to vagueness revolving ships) when i say proceed with caution; fucked up shit happens to fuel the story.
> 
> enjoy :/

The stars look a little less pretty when you are closer to them than usual. You used to see them as glitter spilled on a prussian blue backdrop, but now all you see are bright lights of differing colors and sizes. From up close, you feel like you're the size of them back when you were the one gazing at them from the hills, admiring their light, their beauty.

Sometimes, when you're doing what you have to do to survive, you wish you weren't so small.

-

Sousuke trailed behind the rest of the crew, choosing to take another moment to stare at the surroundings of this alien (literally) planet they'd just arrived on. With the Ship engine broken and parked precariously in the outskirts of the first town they saw, the crew decided to go and gallavant for a while.

Haru was instantly attracted to a fish monger and Rei had to chase after him while Ai went to a flower shop nearby. Kisumi was exploring a few food stalls, buying some tidbits and offering them to the others. Rin continued walking, Sousuke following closely behind until he stopped at a near deserted alleyway. He turned and looked Sousuke in the eye.

"What you did on our last raid was really stupid, Sou." He told him. His look was stern as he was using the tone he reserved for leadership reasons.

"I know, but it had to be done. You know that." Sousuke pointed out.

Rin narrowed his eyebrows. "Even so, you didn't need to risk not only your, but also _everyone else's_ lives."

Sousuke looked away. Of course he knew that, but it wasn't like it resulted in any deaths. "Everyone only sustained minor injuries."

"You _dislocated_ your _shoulder_ , Sousuke!" 

"I'm fine now, Rin."

"Fucking hell," Rin sighed, voice harsh and obviously angry, "are you even listening to me?!"

"Rin."

Rin angrily looked up to face Sousuke. Sousuke chuckled and Rin made a questioning face.

"The captain isn't supposed to cry when he's scolding a crew member." He told him.

Rin made a curious noise and wiped at his eyes. He glared at Sousuke with embarrassment as he frowned.

"Don't think I'm still not mad at you." 

"Wasn't expecting otherwise." Sousuke smiled a little at Rin, prompting Rin to reluctantly give him a toothy grin in return. Rin slung an arm over Sousuke's shoulders.

"We'd better find some place to stay for the time being."

-

After searching for a while, the crew came upon a large hotel. There were large trees growing around the place and it looked to be at least two stories tall. Outside, a pair of young men who looked similar to each other were sweeping up some dead leaves around a large plot of grass.

Before anyone could stop him, Kisumi was shouting and waving at them, saying, "Excuse me! Hi, we would like a place to stay for now!"

Sousuke slapped a hand over his mouth as the two men noticed the crew. One of them energetically bounced when he saw them and ran back into the hotel. The other made a surprised face before sighing and going to greet the crew.

"Nice to meet you," he said, tone gruff but welcoming nonetheless, "my name is Seijuurou. Welcome to the Rockhopper Inn."

"Rockhopper?" Rei repeated with confusion.

"Yeah, not a very stunning name, I know. But it was Nagisa's suggestion, and, around here, nobody says no to Nagisa. Anyway, come on in, I'll see whether I can get you guys a room." Seijuurou said.

The crew cast glances at one another before shrugging and following him inside. As soon as they entered, a frigid gust of air came at them and they simultaneously groaned in relief. The crew paused their basking when a tall young man appeared. Sousuke's eyes widened as they locked with brilliant green ones.

"Hello there," the young man said gently, "my name is Makoto. I guess that you're staying here for the night?"

Rin nodded. "We appreciate your hospitality."

Makoto waved his hand in a dismissing manner. "No, it's our pleasure. I just need you all to write your names down here."

He pulled out a small notebook from a shelf and handed it to the crew. Everyone leaned in to get a better look as Makoto handed Rin a pen. Everyone signed their names (and Sousuke, in between his own staring bouts, noticed Haru staring at Makoto ceaselessly) and was given the keys to their rooms. Rin was to room with Ai, Haru with Kisumi and Sousuke with Rei.

Settling into their room, Rei and Sousuke sighed as they chose which futon to sleep on. Rei decided to take a nap and suggested that Sousuke do the same.

"I think I'll explore for a while." Sousuke said to him.

Rei smiled sadly and said quietly, "Yamazaki-san, you should really rest from time to time."

Sousuke chose to pretend that he didn't hear him and walked away.

-

The inn was huge and easy to get lost in. Sousuke found out the hard way, since the planet's sun had painted the sky orange for a while now yet he still hadn't found the way back to his room.

He'd been spending god knows how long roaming the empty halls of the inn, surprised to discover the number of empty rooms around for an inn. After a while, he was starting to get tired, especially after seeing certain ornaments and decorations repeatedly. Who knows how many rounds he'd made at this rate.

Suddenly, as Sousuke mindlessly wandered around, he bumped into somebody. The other person instantaneously blurted out apologies. Sousuke blinked when he realized who it was.

"Makoto."

The other man looked up and giggled awkwardly. "Ah. S-Sorry. I get flustered really easily."

Sousuke grunted with mirth. "I can tell."

"Are you lost?" Makoto asked. Sousuke nodded and Makoto smiled warmly at him. Sousuke felt his heart skip a beat at the smile, which practically illuminated his features and the entire room to boot.

"I think I can remember your room, um." Makoto paused and Sousuke realized he (and the others) hadn't introduced himself properly.

"Sousuke." He said.

Makoto smiled again and nodded, leading Sousuke towards his room.

"Why did you and your friends decide to stay here anyway?" Makoto asked.

Sousuke nonchalantly replied, "Our ship's engine broke. We plan on visiting a friend for some tomorrow, but for now we all decided that we needed some rest."

Makoto nodded in understanding. "Tamura-san, the owner, was overjoyed to hear that she finally had people staying here."

"Nobody's been here for a while?"

Makoto shook his head. "Business has been down for the last three years. Tamura-san blames it on bad publicity."

"What about you?"

"Eh?"

Sousuke looked away, stopping momentarily. "What do you think is the reason?"

Makoto stared at him blankly before sighing and averting his gaze. He brought his head back up and Sousuke could see through his faux happiness in seconds. "I don't know, honestly."

However, Sousuke decided not to pry and simply followed Makoto back to his room. 

-

Over the next few days, the crew slowly got to know the people who worked at the inn. Haru and Makoto got along extremely well, Makoto's twin siblings taking a liking to the blue-eyed boy instantaneously. Rei and Nagisa, a waiter who had secret aspirations of becoming an engineer, started hanging out, with Kisumi sometimes tagging along as the three tried to fix the engine. Ai stuck with Uozumi, Seijuurou and Momo, a.k.a. the chef, head waiter, and his brother respectively. Rin and Sousuke were left alone most of the time with everyone else preoccupied like that.

"This place is pretty positive." Rin told him.

Sousuke nodded in agreement, munching on an ice cream sandwich the twins made for everyone. Rin looked over to his best friend, snickering when he realized his line of sight was following Makoto, who himself was simply chatting with Haru nearby.

"You should hurry up and make your move, Sousuke." He chided.

Sousuke's eyes widened before he averted his gaze. "What're you talking about?"

"You won't stop staring at Makoto. The least you could do is plan for a date whenever we can visit." Rin pointed out.

Sousuke shook his head. "Nanase and him seem to have more chemistry."

Rin groaned, "Nanase's aromantic, not to mention asexual. He's not the type of guy who wants to get into relationships, let alone pursues one. He's too committed to his damn mackerel."

"True."

"All I'm saying is that with the rate Rei and Nagisa are working, you have like 6 days to ask him out. Or at least tell him how you feel."

Sousuke considered Rin's words for a few moments.

6 days later, they were off. And Sousuke's feelings still hadn't reached Makoto's ears.

-

// Two Months Later \\\

Horror.

Horror was etched on all of their faces as they saw what had become of the town they had visited not too long ago.

Ai was crying. Rei was too. Rin was close to tears and slowly coming apart, while Kisumi was clasping a hand over his mouth in shock. Haru, usually so nonchalant, had run to a bathroom to recollect himself.

And Sousuke?

Sousuke just stood there, silent. Eyes wide and reflecting image of the burnt homes, corpses not visible on ground but clear from their vantage point, people screaming and crying when they were seemingly told the bad news. Tamura-san's body had been found two hours prior, according to a news report they'd heard. Momo, Uozumi, killed. Makoto, Nagisa, Seijuurou: missing. The rest of the Tachibana family had come out alive without Mrs. Tachibana. The Mikoshibas were distraught, meanwhile Nagisa's parents were nowhere to found.

Horror. Pain. Fear.

Hope.

"They're out there," Ai breathed after a while. Everyone turned to him.

"Seijuurou, Tachibana-san and Nagisa-san! They have to be out there _somewhere_ right?" He asked. Everyone considered his words before Haru piped up from behind.

Eyes puffy but voice strong, he said, "Ai's right. Maybe they were captured by whoever did this."

"But why?" Rei asked.

"We can't be sure, Rei. But we have to try and find them," Rin declared, a determined gleam in his eyes, "and find out who did this."

Everyone nodded sternly in agreement.

-

Fuck scared.

He wasn't one for profanities, but right now Makoto was fucking _terrified_.

He, Nagisa and Seijuurou stuck close to one another after being taken by whoever the hell this was. There wasn't enough room for all of them to be in separate cells, thankfully, so they stuck together in the cramped cell they'd been placed in.

It all happened so fast; scarily fast. One moment Makoto was reminiscing with Nagisa about the visitors they'd had two months prior and the next…

Chaos. And then (literally) alien people forced the three onto their ship.

Makoto heard sobbing and looked to Nagisa, before realizing that Nagisa was staring at Seijuurou. The usually optimistic and cheery redhead was crying, tears falling at a fast rate. Makoto watched his longtime friend and coworker fall apart, not really knowing the best way to help.

"M-M-Momo, Momo's dead, I know it," Seijuurou whimpered between his tears, "I-I couldn't, couldn't protect him. How can I protect you guys when I let my own brother _die?!"_

Makoto looked at Seijuurou helplessly, lost for words as Nagisa leaned into his side and tried to quietly soothe him. Makoto slowly enveloped all three of them in a hug, the weight of their current situation crashing hard on them. 

"Rei, have you gotten any idea of who could've attacked the town?" 

Rei shook his head wistfully. On the screen showed various pictures and files on different people, all of whom were lightyears away from where they were. To find them would take days; to interrogate could take weeks. 

"All I know is this: if the attack had purportedly occured in the early morning, right when their sun came up, surely the attacker couldn't have gotten far." Rei concluded. 

Kisumi bit his lip worriedly. "When we stayed here, we didn't get to interact with the locals much, did we?" "Either way we can't ask them for much info," Rei pointed out, "most are either in shock or grief." 

Rin and Sousuke nodded, faces lined with regret. Suddenly, Rin's communicator rang. 

"Eh? Who's calling me?" He asked, looking around the ship. Everyone's heads had looked up with curiosity. His eyebrows narrowed and he answered. 

_"H— Hello? Is this the MIZUCHI team?"_

A voice, definitely female, came through the speakers. It was muffled by static but just loud enough for the crew to hear. 

"Yeah. Who is this?" Rin asked. 

_"I can—ot disclose my identity, for I—ot one of your allies. Ho—ever, I do have information."_

_Everyone leaned in closely. Rin, however, was immediately suspicious. "How can we be so sure as to trust you?"_

_"D— you want to see Mako—, N—isa and Seiju——?_ Alive?" 

_Haru, Sousuke, Rei and Ai's eyes widened as Rin tsked petulantly. As much as he wanted to save them, he had an uncharacteristically bad feeling about this._

"Fine. What do we have to do?" 

_"Go— Planet Amaryllis; there— king—— will be waiting."_

And the call ended. The whole crew was silent, perplexed and unsure. Everyone knew the risk, but innocent lives were at stake. The room was almost silent for a few heartbeats. 

__It then occured to everyone that Kisumi was starting to shiver and hyperventilate. He'd paled even more than his usual complexion and his eyes were frighteningly wide._ _

__"K-Kisumi?" Rin asked, all eyes now on their pink-haired comrade._ _

__"I-I-I-I-I– No, no, I-I can't, _no_ , please," Kisumi whispered repeatedly, as if he were pleading to somebody softly. Ai had started to approach him._ _

__"Kisumi–"_ _

___"Don't touch me!"_ _ _

__Kisumi's shriek was driven by fear, all of them could tell, as he backed away from the others before he dropped onto his knees._ _

__"Please," He softly whimpered, arms wrapping around himself like he was going to be sick. Ai, persistent, quietly got down beside him._ _

__"Kisumi… It's okay, Kisumi, we're you're friends…" He told him softly. He brushed away some hair falling over Kisumi's eyes._ _

__Kisumi whimpered like he'd been injured and Haru offered to help Ai bring him back to his bunk. He helped Kisumi to stand and slowly accompanied him there while Ai insisted that he'd stay with him._ _

__Rin, Rei and Sousuke were left wondering what had just happened._ _

__-_ _

__"The king requests your presences!"_ _

__Nagisa, Seijuurou and Makoto blearily opened their eyes before being shoved to follow some guards. Were they still aboard a ship? Either way, where were they?_ _

__Before they knew it, they were faced with a man on a large throne, lined with purple crystals and made of what looked like magnesium. Their hands had been tied behind their backs and multiple guards surrounded them._ _

__A quiet yet menacing voice boomed, "Who did you bring me, Miho?"_ _

__A young lady with bob-styled brown hair bowed before the throne. "I brought three, my Lord. I hope that they suit your taste."_ _

__A grunt was heard before the man observed the three. Nagisa was quaking and close to tears from fear while Makoto was avoiding his gaze. Seijuurou was biting his tongue, trying to contain his seething anger._ _

__Cold fingers were suddenly tracing the outline of Makoto's jaw, making him squeeze his eyes shut in terror. Nagisa gasped and bit his bottom lip so hard blood started leaking between his teeth._ _

__Seijuurou was less subtle. "Don't _fucking_ touch him, you _monster_!"_ _

__The man's head seemed to turn and suddenly Seijuurou was writhing on the floor, screaming and crying out in pain. Makoto made his best assumption on what was happening. No matter how he perceived it, it didn't really matter since he didn't want anybody else getting hurt._ _

__" _Stop!_ " He cried out at the man and, for some moments, Seijuurou's shouts ceased and were replaced with groans and coughs. Makoto panted, heart racing with fear as his head was abruptly pulled to face the man._ _

__Furious golden eyes stared down at him. "Who do you think you are, showing such insolence in _my_ presence?"_ _

__Makoto gulped and, mustering whatever courage he had left, said in a voice just barely loud enough to be heard, "I don't allow my friends to get hurt."_ _

__The man cocked an eyebrow and roughly let go of Makoto's face, causing him to fall back as the man headed back to his throne. He turned to Miho._ _

__"It's clear you only picked these people because they were available at that time, Miho. What a shame indeed."_ _

__Miho's eyes widened and her voice went high as she shouted, "My Lord, I-I apologize! H-However, please spare me!"_ _

__"Hm? Why should I?"_ _

__A nerve-wracking silence hung in the air before Miho spoke in a trembling voice, "I-I called the MIZUCHI crew. They are looking for our prisoners."_ _

__The man raised an eyebrow again. "Mizu… Chi?"_ _

__"The six young men who, who tried to steal the ornament from you three weeks ago." Miho explained._ _

__"Hmm…" The man's eyes momentarily widened before his lips spread into a malicious grin._ _

__"Fine then. Get the prisoners back in their cell; after that, make preparations for our soon-to-be _guests_."_ _

__-_ _

__"I'm sorry, that I freaked out on you guys earlier," Kisumi mumbled, knees pulled up to his chest. "Had some ugly flashbacks."_ _

__Rin rested a comforting hand on his shoulder, while Ai smiled gently at him. The grey-haired boy told him, "It's okay, Kisumi, but…"_ _

__"What was it that scared you so badly?" Rei finished. Kisumi stared at him before frowning and pulling his knees closer to him._ _

__He sighed, knowing what had to be said._ _

__x_ _

___Kisumi tossed a bunch of flowers he'd collected into the air happily, laughing and grinning as they scattered all over the sand he was playing in. Nearby, most of the children were ignoring his presence, not that Kisumi really cared. If anything, he preferred it this way._ _ _

___However, a young girl about his age came to him. Her hair was a tawny brown and her eyes a chrome green as she looked at Kisumi curiously._ _ _

___"Why're you playing alone?" She asked him._ _ _

___"Because I like it that way." Kisumi replied simply._ _ _

___The girl made a confused face as she picked up a random flower that had been thrown on the floor. She gave it back to Kisumi._ _ _

___"My name's Hanamura. Can I play with you?"_ _ _

___Kisumi blinked before nodding slightly. Hanamura chuckled and smiled and, for the first time, Kisumi honestly considered the possibility that he had a friend._ _ _

__x_ _

__Kisumi sighed as he remembered his childhood friend._ _

__"Hanamura was my best friend. Until _he_ came along and destroyed everything." Kisumi said._ _

__The others cast him a questioning look. Haru said a quick "What?" while Ai had worry evident on his features._ _

__"A dictator, named Morinaga; he came to my hometown and decimated it. He killed Hanamura and her family right in front of me." Kisumi mumbled._ _

__"Then he stabbed me once through the stomach." Kisumi's hand brushed against the scar there as he said, "That's why I left my planet and joined."_ _

__Ai gasped a little as the others pulled back in shock. Nobody could have predicted the sheer amount of hurt and pain happy-go-lucky Kisumi would have gone through in his lifetime._ _

__Haru spoke up. "Kisumi."_ _

__Kisumi turned to him. Haru asked, "Do you want to get revenge on him?"_ _

__Kisumi hesitated. He did, honestly. But…_ _

__"No." He smiled, a hint of sadness making its way onto it. "Even if I did, you all wouldn't let me, would you?"_ _

__Ai gave him nothing more than a small but reassuring smile in return._ _

__-_ _

__One moment the crew was fighting off at least twenty guards._ _

__The next, they was groaning in pain and writhing on the ground as the now-king, Morinaga, observed them._ _

__Considering the fight they put up, it technically wasn't a complete waste. But Sousuke knew it would _definitely_ be if anyone died right here and right now._ _

__He slowly tried to get to his feet, hissing at the pain shooting up his shoulder. He must have aggravated the last wound when he fell; fuck, Rin was going to be so pissed at him for this._ _

__Makoto, Nagisa and Seijuurou (a fatigued one at that) all were forced to watch in a cage as a lady with bobbed brown hair looked on. Apparently Morinaga was confident that he could take the six of them on. Sousuke heard a deep chuckle and turned his head to see him approaching an injured Kisumi._ _

__Before he could intercept, Haru had already gotten to his feet and shot at the king with his weapon. The blue beam did nothing to his golden armor, however the king menacingly turned his head in Haru's direction before Haru was dashing away from some strange explosions._ _

__"His powers are telepathic, aren't they…?" Rei breathed as Sousuke nodded gravely._ _

__"Rei and I can get Seijuurou and the others out first." Ai told him._ _

__Sousuke nodded and the two were off while Sousuke and Rin charged at Morinaga. The king was faster than Rin's, but fell towards Sousuke's sword instead as the green energy pierced his chest, yet barely fazing him. While Haru picked up Kisumi and lugged him off to a safer area, Sousuke had pulled his sword back as Rin aimed for the king's head. The king grabbed Rin's sword by its blade as Sousuke was flung back by some telepathic force. He groaned as Rin pulled out his emergency dagger and let go of his sword, only for the king to grab him by his wrist and fling him towards Sousuke._ _

__He turned towards Ai and Rei, the former who managed to use a paralyzing device to keep the lady at bay for the time being. Rei and Ai helped Makoto, Seijuurou and Nagisa out as the king's lip twitched into a smirk. Rin's sword started floating in the air._ _

__It shot out like a bullet straight towards them._ _

___"Ai! Rei!"_ Rin yelled._ _

__Suddenly a scream. Then blood._ _

__Then Rei thrashing on the ground clutching his arm. Or rather, what was left of it._ _

__The king seemed unimpressed, tsking. "Damn. I was aiming for the green-eyed one."_ _

__Rin went bloodthirsty as he bolted at the king. Ai, with a horrified expression, set out to treat the wound, Makoto and Seijuurou helping to get Rei away from the battlefield. Sousuke looked over to Haru and Kisumi and saw them charging at the king as well. His resolve hardened as he too charged._ _

__They fought as well as they could, the four of them. Rin was going in with his dagger and nothing more, while Haru and Sousuke each at their gun and sword respectively. Kisumi stayed near the others, firing off energy arrows at any stray guard who passed and the king, whenever he had a good shot. Ai had cauterized the wound and was checking on the rest. As a healer, he knew to stay out of the main battle and just treat who he could._ _

__Finally, by the end of it, Rin and Haru were near-collapsing, Sousuke was certain that his shoulder was dislocated (again), and Kisumi's wrist was sore from firing so many arrows._ _

__But they were miraculously victorious._ _

__The king was down and out, multiple stab wounds and arrows on his body. He wasn't fully unconscious; he was barely there and was being held down by Rin and Sousuke's emergency daggers plus plenty of Kisumi's arrows. Miho had been subdued by Ai and Kisumi, now tied up in some cord. Sousuke couldn't help but notice the lingering fear but overwhelming satisfaction in Kisumi's eyes as the pink-haired man panted heavily._ _

__Nagisa was still sniffling over Rei, who, thanks to Ai, was alive. He was in shock and needed plenty of rest, as he would with any other injury._ _

__"What now?" Haru asked._ _

__"I'll call the feds on these two. After that, we'd best be off to get some rest." Rin informed the crew. "And to avoid further injury."_ _

__"Hang on," Makoto interjected. When everyone turned to face him, he asked, "are you going to drop us off back at our planet?"_ _

__Rin glanced at Sousuke. "You don't have anywhere else to go, do you?"_ _

__Nagisa mumbled, "I want to stay with Rei-chan."_ _

__Seijuurou nodded. "Surely you guys could use the manpower? If not, then we'll just help around your ship when necessary."_ _

__Rin considered, glancing at the others before smiling a little. "We don't mind, but you guys know what you're getting into right."_ _

__Makoto, Seijuurou and Nagisa nodded readily._ _

__-_ _

__After dinner, Sousuke and Makoto ended up agreeing to bunk together (per Rin's insistance as well). With Sousuke's bunk being relatively big compared to the others (the tallest person[s] needed the biggest bunk, he argued), Makoto ended up setting the futon he was given beside Sousuke's._ _

__Sousuke was about ready to doze off, forcing himself to stay awake while looking outside. The stars looked nice tonight; maybe they were celebrating the crew's victory. Suddenly, a head was bumping against Sousuke's good shoulder. He flinched and looked over only to see Makoto sitting serenely beside him. His eyes were half-shut and had rings underneath them._ _

__"Sorry I scared you." He mumbled so incoherently Sousuke felt too awkward to ask him to repeat himself. So he made a non-committed grunt before focusing his eyes on Makoto._ _

__"How's Rei?"_ _

__"Hm? Oh, he's recuperating well. He was shocked to learn about his arm, but Nagisa was quick to comfort him. I think they're still in the ward now." Makoto elaborated._ _

__"Kisumi is rooming with Ai now, right?"_ _

__"Yeah, since Rin suggested so. They're taking Rei's bunk, and Rin and Sei are rooming in Rin's bunk, according to Haru."_ _

__Damn. His rival in love._ _

__Wait. What._ _

__"Oh. Okay." Sousuke said simply._ _

__Makoto yawned as he stood. "Shall we go to sleep?"_ _

__Sousuke sighed, sluggishly standing as the two walked back to thier bunk. During the walk there, Makoto asked, "Why were you looking outside?"_ _

__"Excuse me?"_ _

__"I mean," Makoto said, a little more quietly, "don't you see the stars all the time, no matter what you're doing?"_ _

__Sousuke pondered for a moment. He smiled a little and told him, "When I was younger, I used to dream of touching the stars and being up-close with them. I guess I'm reliving that want of mine."_ _

__Makoto remained silent before nodding. Sousuke could practially feel the despondency radiating off of him._ _

__"I hope my family's okay." He muttered to himself._ _

__Silence filled the room and Sousuke was determined to end it._ _

__He enveloped Makoto in a bear hug. Makoto squeaked in surprise before hugging back slightly, nose buried in Sousuke's chest. Sousuke pecked the side of his forehead fleetingly, bright red flushed on his cheeks. When he pulled away, Makoto looked exactly the same._ _

__"I thought you liked Rin–"_ _

__"I thought you liked Haru–"_ _

__The two spoke in unison before bursting into a fit of giggles. Sousuke told him, "Me? And Rin? No way, I actually value my life."_ _

__"Haru and I are just friends, obviously! He doesn't seem like the dating type anyway." Makoto pointed out._ _

__Sousuke exhaled deeply before looking earnestly at Makoto. "So… You don't mind being my boyfriend, right? At least for now, we can consider it a test run, of sorts."_ _

__Makoto made a shocked expression and Sousuke honestly thought he was about to scream and run. However, when he saw a warm smile he felt the warmth spreading through his chest._ _

__"Well, I can't say I'm all that objected to it. But, uh, we'll take it slow, right?"_ _

__Sousuke grinned and pecked Makoto's cheek again, nodding slightly. Together, they returned to their bunk ( _not to have sex, you sick pervs_ ). This was only the beginning of them, and the new beginning to all._ _


End file.
